Although it may seem counter-intuitive, the pandemic meant a lot of growth for Production Attic. We have increased our output by roughly 300% and changed the way we work. While we were unable to shoot on location, we moved a lot of our storytelling and brand design into a digital space. Enter our new Graphic Designer, Ryan John-Wright. Ryan’s main job as our GD is to create a coherent and effective message throughout all of our campaigns and we are pleased to have him on board during this exciting time in our company’s growth.
Growing up in an artistic family, Ryan was able to pursue his numerous creative passions from a young age. To work in an industry he loved, Ryan moved from Newcastle to Middlesbrough to study Graphic Design at Teesside University. There, he gained a wealth of knowledge about the art of Graphic Design and the skills to put what he learned into practice. Although Ryan has worked as a creative for several years, he has had a passion for film and television from a young age and is excited to utilise his skills in this role.
As a Graphic Designer at Production Attic, Ryan wears many different hats depending on the project. He provides art direction for our projects and occasionally directs film on set, reviews all drafts and gives feedback, keeps an eye on how all of our projects are tracking on the design front, and creates all of our branding and marketing – from our advertising illustration to video asset creation. One area of his role that lends itself to underappreciation is what goes into providing great art direction on films. Far from picking out a colour pallet, art direction is centred around creating style frames as mock-ups of how a design should look in order to inform the editors/ animators what the overall message of the project is. This is an all-encompassing task, ranging from creating illustrations, typography, layouts, and brainstorming new concepts.
Although Ryan has only been with us for a few months, he has already worked on several projects. Two of his favourites have required very different things from him. For PAMIS, Ryan created and animated some illustrations for the intro of a children’s storytime film, giving a reference image for the immersive storytelling. Ryan’s other standout project was for the Hydro. It was a large project with a big-name client and a tight turnaround. For this, Ryan created animation concepts for the film, provided direction to our animators and editors, and problem-solved. In particular, Ryan created the end sequence of the film to tie it all together.
Outside of Production Attic, Ryan’s favourite project was creating an immersive horror event. Ryan created movie-quality surroundings, props, and sets by harnessing his design skills. To further the immersive experience he added elements that would play on the audience’s sense of sight, smell, touch, and hearing.
On a personal note, Ryan views his greatest achievement as gaining a University degree in Graphic Design, which was challenging at the time but ultimately very rewarding. If you asked any of his friends and family what animated character he most reminds them of, the consensus would be Woody from Toy Story. Goofy in a Jim Carey sort of way, Ryan is humorous, enjoys making people laugh, empathetic and supportive. We are very lucky to have Ryan on board and can’t wait to see what he comes up with for our clients in the future!
